ESSENCE Magazine Is Black-Owned Once Again

Essence Ventures LLC, an independent African-American owned company, announced on Wednesday that it has acquired Essence Communications from Time, Inc.

Essence President Michelle Ebanks praised the decision, saying, “This acquisition of ESSENCE represents the beginning of an exciting transformation of our iconic brand as it evolves to serve the needs and interests of multigenerational Black women around the world in an even more elevated and comprehensive way across print, digital, e-commerce and experiential platforms. In addition, it represents a critical recognition, centering and elevation of the Black women running the business from solely a leadership position to a co-ownership position.”

‘Ownership by the people’

Ebanks will continue to head up the company and will be on the board of directors.

“The strategic vision and leadership that Michelle has provided to ESSENCE over the years have been exemplary, and we are thrilled to work with her and her talented team to provide the necessary resources and support to continue to grow the engagement and influence of the ESSENCE brand and transform this business,” said Richelieu Dennis, founder and chairperson of Essence Ventures.

“As importantly, we are excited to be able to return this culturally relevant and historically significant platform to ownership by the people and the consumers whom it serves and offer new opportunities for the women leading the business to also be partners in the business.”

“We remain committed to leveraging our resources to provide opportunities for other culturally-rooted entrepreneurs and businesses that further our culture and create economic opportunities for our communities. Our focus here will be on ensuring that Essence reaches its full potential via heightened capabilities, technology, products and touch points that super-serve the interests of Black women locally and globally. We look forward to helping generate new opportunities that create more value across the ESSENCE portfolio with unmatched content, commerce and international access for the millions of women it serves, as well as exceptional value for our advertising partners and content creators.”

Doug Jones hires African-American chief of staff

Sen.-elect Doug Jones (D-Ala.) has hired former transportation official and congressional aide Dana Gresham as his new chief of staff.

Jones will be the only Senate Democrat to have an African-American chief of staff once Gresham comes on board. Two Senate Republicans, Sens. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Jerry Moran of Kansas, have black chiefs of staff.

Gresham previously served as assistant secretary for government affairs at the Department of Transportation, and before that was chief of staff to then-Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.). A graduate of Georgetown University, Gresham is an Alabama native: A tweet Tuesday by Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) referred to him as "Birmingham's own stand out."

Jones has made hiring a diverse staff a priority since he staged an upset win over Republican Roy Moore in last month's special Senate election in Alabama.

[SOURCE: POLITICO]

Experts say black Confederate soldiers didn't fight for South Carolina

Two South Carolina lawmakers want to erect a monument on the State House grounds to African-Americans who served the state as Confederate soldiers. But records show the state never accepted nor recognized armed African-American soldiers during the Civil War.

“In all my years of research, I can say I have seen no documentation of black South Carolina soldiers fighting for the Confederacy,” said Walter Edgar, who for 32 years was director of the University of South Carolina’s Institute for Southern Studies and is author of “South Carolina: A History.”

“In fact, when secession came, the state turned down free (blacks) who wanted to volunteer because they didn’t want armed persons of color,” he said.

Pension records gleaned from the S.C. Department of History and Archives show no black Confederate soldiers received payment for combat service. And of the more than 300 blacks who did receive pensions after they were allowed in 1923, all served as body servants or cooks, the records show.

Confederate law prohibited blacks from bearing arms in the war, records show, until that edict was repealed in 1865 at the very end of the conflict.

That repeal resulted in a handful of African-American units in states such as Virginia and Texas. But there were none in South Carolina, which prohibited African-Americans from carrying guns in the state’s service throughout the war for fear of insurrection, according to the archives.

Read more: A monument to SC’s black Confederate soldiers? None fought for the South, experts say

Army soldier home for the holidays, died trying to save people from in NYC fire

An Army soldier who was visiting New York City for the holidays was among the 12 victims in the deadly Bronx blaze, his father told CBS New York. Kwabena Mensah said his son, Emmanuel, spent his final moments trying to rescue other people in the building.

"That's what I think, because it was in his nature," the elder Mensah said. "He wanted to help people out."

The 28-year-old was in for the holidays – his first trip home since joining the Army a year ago.

Emmanuel Mensah's roommate was the last to see him. She made it out with her four children and husband but lost Mensah in the mix.

"Tried to call and phone everywhere, my husband went to hospital," she told CBS New York.

Kwaben Mensah took comfort knowing his son lived and died a hero.

"God is in control, I have no control. God is in control," he said.

[SOURCE: CBS NEWS]

FBI Affidavit Details David Clarke’s Intimidation Of Fellow Passenger

Feds dropped their case against him in May, but Milwaukee investigators determined he had abused his authority, the filing reveals.

Former Sheriff David Clarke abused his authority when he ordered the mistreatment and intimidation of a fellow passenger on a flight to Milwaukee in January, according to a newly revealed FBI search warrant affidavit, because Clarke assumed the man was showing disrespect toward the right-wing Donald Trump booster.

The affidavit, which had requested a search of Clarke’s private email account, was revealed as part of a filing in U.S. District Court in Wisconsin on Thursday. It’s unclear if it indicates continued interest by the FBI or just details information from months earlier.

In May, federal prosecutors informed Clarke’s attorney that they weren’t going to pursue charges against him over his encounter with passenger Dan Black. But according to the affidavit, filed in March, investigators for the Audit Services Division of the Milwaukee County controller’s office determined as part of its own investigation that Clarke had “used his official position as sheriff of Milwaukee County in excess of his lawful authority to direct his deputies to stop and question Black without legal justification.”

Despite the damaging information in the affidavit, the Department of Justice sent a letter to Clarke’s attorney in May saying that a decision had been made “not to criminally prosecute any civil rights offenses” against Clarke because of concerns that such a case would be difficult to prove “beyond a reasonable doubt.” The letter warns, however, that the “decision could change if additional information came to light.”

Read more: FBI Affidavit Details Ex-Sheriff David Clarke’s Intimidation Of Fellow Passenger